IP in Africa: a new era for IP rights

Long gone are the days in which intellectual property protection was seen as an encumbrance to African countries. Now there are winds of change and IP protection is a necessity. The global financial crisis has aided in diverting foreign direct investment from developed nations to the African continent. Economic growth is always linked with high standards of IP protection, but if this matter was overlooked by the local authorities in the 1990s, it is now viewed as a way to promote innovation and technology transfer, and boost confidence in foreign investors.